Ellen G. Detlefsen

Having it all? Combining work and family in a male and a female profession

Are women in a female-dominated profession more successfully able to combine work and family obligations than women in a male-dominated profession? To explore this question, a comparison was made between the family status and careers of 747 women librarians (a female-dominated profession) and those of 449 women MBAs (a male-dominated profession). It was expected that the librarians would marry earlier and have more children. This general prediction was not supported. Over half of both groups of women were married, and after controlling for age, there were no differences in number of children. However, many women without children in both groups reported that they would like to be mothers. This disparity between wanting children and not having them was more common for women MBAs than women MLSs. MBAs and librarians were about equally likely to have had job interruptions, but librarians were more likely to have worked part-time. Reasons for an interruption to full-time work were as likely to be for problems finding (full-time) work as for family responsibilities. Librarians salaries were much lower, but job interruptions and part-time work had a more negative effect on the salaries of women in business. In sum, the data suggest that many of the women surveyed have not combined motherhood with a professional career and that it is probably somewhat more difficult to combine a family with a career in business than with a career in library science.

Information practices of disaster preparedness professionals in multidisciplinary groups

OBJECTIVE: This article summarizes the results of a descriptive qualitative study addressing the question, what are the information practices of the various professionals involved in disaster preparedness? We present key results, but focus on issues of choice and adaptation of models and theories for the study. METHODS: Primary and secondary literature on theory and models of information behavior were consulted. Taylors Information Use Environments (IUE) model, Institutional Theory, and Dervins Sense-Making metatheory were used in the design of an open-ended interview schedule. Twelve individual face-to-face interviews were conducted with disaster professionals drawn from the Pennsylvania Preparedness Leadership Institute (PPLI) scholars. Taylors Information Use Environments (IUE) model served as a preliminary coding framework for the transcribed interviews. RESULTS: Disaster professionals varied in their use of libraries, peer-reviewed literature, and information management techniques, but many practices were similar across professions, including heavy Internet and email use, satisficing, and preference for sources that are socially and physically accessible. CONCLUSIONS: The IUE model provided an excellent foundation for the coding scheme, but required modification to place the workplace in the larger social context of the current information society. It is not possible to confidently attribute all work-related information practices to professional culture. Differences in information practice observed may arise from professional training and organizational environment, while many similarities observed seem to arise from everyday information practices common to non-work settings.

Teaching about teaching and instruction on instruction: a challenge for health sciences library education.

OBJECTIVEnThis is a review of the masters-level curricula of the fifty-eight America Library Association-accredited library and information science programs and iSchools for evidence of coursework and content related to library instruction. Special emphasis is placed on the schools and programs that also offer coursework in medical or health sciences librarianship.nnnMETHODSnFifty-eight school and program websites were reviewed. Course titles and course descriptions for seventy-three separate classes were analyzed. Twenty-three syllabi were examined.nnnRESULTSnAll North American library education programs offer at least one course in the general area of library instruction; some programs offer multiple courses. No courses on instruction, however, are focused directly on the specialized area of health sciences librarianship.nnnCONCLUSIONSnMasters degree students can take appropriate classes on library instruction, but the medical library profession needs to offer continuing education opportunities for practitioners who want to have specific instruction for the specialized world of the health sciences.

Clinical research informationist

The article describes an informationist who serves a large clinical research team in a medical school as a part‐time information officer. The multidisciplinary team is focused on clinical and research issues in depression as it affects the elderly. The goals, projects, and key findings of the team are highlighted. The emerging role of the information officer is described.

User costs: Information as a social good vs. information as a commodity

Abstract Dr. Detlefsen examines the social, economic, technological and political polarities in which the arguments surrounding access to government information are cast, such as fee vs. free, information-rich vs. information-poor, traditional vs. nontraditional media, collections vs. connections, and government vs. free enterprise. She talks about the exclusion of whole classes (including librarians) from technological education and the division of the haves and the have-nots which is exacerbated by the information society.

The pipeline problem: where do we go from here?

In her January 2007 Journal of the Medical Library Association editorial [1], “The Next Challenge: Where Do We Go From Here?” Nunzia Bettinsoli Giuse, AHIP, FMLA, described the “richness and diversity of talent” in medical libraries and challenged readers to deal with the problem of professional librarians who decide to leave the library environment for other professions. The discussion of “where do we go from here?” has another aspect, however. Just as we must focus on expanding librarians roles and opportunities for advancement, we must also focus on pipeline issues. If, as Giuse fears, many talented expert librarians will leave the field, what will happen when this loss is coupled with the expected retirement of the “baby boomer” generation, which has peopled libraries since the 1960s [2]? n nAs a profession, we need to look at the changing demographics of library education as well as the issue of recruiting the next generation of colleagues. The reports of the MLAs 2001–2003 Task Force to Plan Recruitment for the 21st Century Workforce of health information professionals have some good ideas. As a result of the task forces work, MLAs new Professional Recruitment and Retention Committee was approved as a standing committee for the association in September 2006. n n nThe 2003 report from the MLA recruitment task force read, in part, n nEvidence suggests that while a large percentage of the current medical librarian workforce will be eligible to retire in this decade, there is not a pipeline of new recruits sufficient to fill positions that will become vacant … Evidence also suggests that new library school graduates are turning with more frequency to “high tech” jobs in industry that pay higher salaries and may be considered more glamorous than library jobs. … In short, medical libraries are facing a shortage of people both interested in and qualified to form the 21st century health information professional workforce. [3] n n nThere are two possible courses of action to alleviate this shortage that we, as a profession, should consider: one in the short run and the other as a long-range activity. n nIn the near future, we must look around for the colleagues who do not have the masters of library and information science (MLIS) degree and find ways to encourage these talented individuals to seek the graduate degree that defines professionalism for us. Looking around us for the person who has a baccalaureate degree and significant library experience should not be difficult. Given the increasing number of distance education opportunities for professional education, it is often more a matter of enabling that colleague to invest the minimum of two years that is typically required to earn an MLIS in an online program. Maintaining regular employment and providing or retaining the normal benefits must be coupled with flexibility in work scheduling and academic support. If colleagues do choose this option, be sure that they choose online study programs that are accredited, are well established, and offer appropriate coursework in health sciences resources and information technology. n nChoosing a program from a school that is a member of the Web-based Information Science Education (WISE) consortium [4] is also a wise idea. This consortium of 12 LIS programs and i-Schools allows students to register for online classes from partner schools at the home tuition rate. Several of the WISE schools regularly offer a range of health sciences librarianship courses that are not routinely offered in other LIS schools. Also a sophisticated model for moving staff from nonprofessional to professional careers has been tried at Vanderbilt University [5]. Three staff members at the Eskind Biomedical Library, while working in nonprofessional positions, completed two years of online education in the University of Pittsburgh FastTrack MLIS program [6], followed by a formal post-masters internship year. Staff members from two other academic health sciences libraries and one from a large hospital library are now following a similar path. n nThe long-range issue is to recruit the next generation. Research suggests that young people of the Millennial Generation—individuals born between 1980 and 2000— make choices about their possible careers quite early, and they (and their parents) rule in and rule out career choices when they are still in high school [7]. Our challenge is to provide role models and opportunities for an age group that will not enter our ranks for at least eight to ten years. n nOne approach to this challenge can be seen in the work of the Careers in Heath Information, Librarianship, and Informatics (CHILI) project [8, 9], which seeks specifically to plan recruitment activities that target high school age youth from underrepresented racial and ethnic groups. The participants are from eight leading academic health sciences center libraries—Georgetown University, Houston Academy of Medicine-Texas Medical Center, Howard University, University of Colorado, Johns Hopkins University, Washington University, St. Louis, Yale University, and the University of Tennessee at Memphis. Among the tactics that the CHILI group has found effective in attracting the attention of high school students of color have been shadowing events such as a “Groundhog Job Shadow Day” [10], summer internships (preferably with a paycheck attached), participation in high school magnet programs, and programming that involves high school science teachers. n nThe challenges of peopling our profession for the twenty-first century will be with us for years to come. We have initial evidence that we should be cultivating both our colleagues and high school students, but that we will need to work together to accomplish the goal of filling the pipeline. What will you do to help us attract the best and the brightest? n nA note regarding full disclosure: I am or have been involved with all of the activities described in this editorial: I served on the MLA Task Force to Plan Recruitment of the 21st Century Workforce; I teach in a WISE-participating i-School; I am a coprincipal investigator on the Vanderbilt federal Institute for Museum and Library Services (IMLS) grant; and I am an advisor for the CHILI project. It should also be noted that the WISE consortium, the Vanderbilt/Pittsburgh model, and the CHILI project have all been funded by IMLS [11].

Health Libraries and Information Services in Tanzania: A Strategic Assessment

BACKGROUNDnThe intention of the Government of Tanzania is to establish more health information resource canters in all health facilities. With this regard, health information science personnel are needed to provide adequate and accurate health information services. However, availability of these personnel remains to be a challenge because of their non-existence.nnnOBJECTIVEnTo identify the current status and local impact of health sciences libraries and user perception of these libraries, as a prerequisite to the development of a competence-based curriculum for health information science training in Tanzania.nnnMETHODSnA needs assessment was carried out using a convenience sample of local respondents, including librarians, trainers, academicians, students, health care providers, and patients and families, drawn from national, referral, regional, district hospitals, health training institutions, and universities from both government and nongovernment entities in Tanzania. A focus group approach was used to gather data from respondents.nnnRESULTSnResults from this assessment revealed that health science libraries in Tanzania are faced with the challenges of insufficient infrastructure, old technology, limited facilities and furniture, inadequate and incompetent library staff, lack of health sciences librarians, outdated and insufficient resources, and low knowledge and use of information technologies by library clients. Most respondents would prefer to have both physical and electronic libraries, as well as librarians with specialized health information science skills, to cope with changing nature of the medical field.nnnCONCLUSIONSnThe findings obtained from this assessment are strong enough to guide the development of a curriculum and training strategy and an operational plan and training packages for health information professionals. The development of a training curriculum for health information science professionals will mean better health information service delivery for Tanzania.

Ann Hodge Macomber, AHIP, FMLA, 1926–2010

Ann Hodge Macomber, AHIP, FMLA, the retired associate/acting director of the Louisiana State University (LSU) Health Science Center (LSUHSC) Libraries, died on August 1, 2010, at her home in New Orleans, Louisiana. A native of Birmingham, Alabama, Ann graduated from Newcomb College of Tulane University in 1947 and began her career as a library associate at LSUs medical campus in New Orleans in 1949. She earned her master of library science degree from Emory University in 1951. After a five-year stint at the library of the Emory University School of Medicine, Ann returned to New Orleans and resumed her career at LSUHSC as its acquisitions librarian. In addition to her role in collection development, Ann also served as the librarys associate director from 1976 to 1987 and as its acting director from June 1985 to July 1986. She retired from the library in 1987 and was honored at that time with the title of emeritus professor of medical bibliography. n n n n n nColleagues remember that Anns knowledge and decision-making skills were instrumental in the development of the librarys monograph and serial collections. While maintaining a firm commitment to the traditional roles of librarianship, Ann also helped guide the library through its early progression into the world of automation. She once said, “Its wonderful to have mechanical devices to transmit information, but in my day chips meant wood, and hardware meant hammers and nails.” In her final years with LSU, Ann was a key force in planning the librarys design and relocation to the resource center. Much of what the library is today is based on the foundations laid by Ann Macomber [1]. n nAnns dedication to the library profession is evidenced by her very active participation in the Medical Library Association (MLA), at both the national and the regional levels. She was a leader in the Southern Regional Group. While opposing the split of the Southern Regional Group into what would become the South Central Chapter and the Southern Chapter in 1973, Ann continued to maintain close ties with both chapters. In a 1993 interview about the history of the Southern Chapter, she recollected the formality of the regional meetings when “all the ladies wore gloves and some wore hats” [2]. Her advice to new medical librarian colleagues was to take time out from all the meetings, continuing education courses, and committee work to “have social intercourse with your colleagues and peers [and to] share thoughts about whats going on in your libraries. Thats how you grow” [3]. n nIn 1989, Ann was named a Fellow of MLA. Though she highly valued her professional memberships, Ann firmly believed that the key to personal and professional growth was found in the “one-on-one” sharing of ideas between colleagues. She maintained and promoted this philosophy throughout her professional career. At the time of her death, a colleague from Charleston, South Carolina, noted that “a long time ago, Ann was most kind and thoughtful when I was just starting my professional life. It made a huge difference in my ability to get involved and make an impact. She was a model of not only what to do—but how to do it right” [4]. n nAnn also devoted much of her private life to civic affairs. She served on the board of directors for various organizations and was interested in the work of the Poydras Home, a nonprofit retirement community providing services for the elderly of New Orleans. She was president of the Poydras Home Auxiliary from 1997 through 2000. She also held memberships in the Orleans Club, the Phi Mu sorority, the Plimsoll Club, and the Fine Arts Club. She endowed a fund at her undergraduate alma mater for the printing of Under the Oaks, a publication for Newcomb College alumnae. In her spare time, Ann was an avid reader and crossword puzzle enthusiast. n nAnn was preceded in death by her husband, Donald Macomber Jr., a marine paleontologist with the Shell Oil Company. She is survived by a sister, two stepchildren, nieces and nephews, and many colleagues and friends.